The 2026 World Cup will feature greater than a dozen matches played in Canada this summer, and a brand new evaluation estimates each game will cost $82 million of presidency funding.
The parliamentary budget officer (PBO) released its evaluation Wednesday of federal commitments and costs related to co-hosting the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, and the way much taxpayers will likely be on the hook for.
It estimates a complete cost of $1.1 billion, of which $473 million will come from the federal government, and the remaining $593 million will come from other levels of presidency.
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The PBO report says this implies each of the 13 total games played on Canadian soil will cost about $82 million. It adds that this figure is consistent with past public spending to host World Cup events.
The PBO report says Canada is spending lower than a number of the most up-to-date World Cup events.
For instance, in U.S. dollars, Canada spending $59.6 million per game (roughly C$82 million as of publication) is lower than the $90.9 million that Brazil spent per game in 2014, and the $79.6 million Russia spent in 2018. The PBO didn’t provide figures from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar for comparison.
World Cup soccer games are a number of the most expensive sporting events. In reality, the associated fee of 1 game is comparable to your complete upper limit salary cap for an NHL team of $95.5 million within the 2025-26 season.
The PBO says a number of the biggest expenditures include hosting costs in Toronto and Vancouver, specifically operations and infrastructure like stadium upgrades, along with public safety funding like security at events directly, bolstering border services, and providing additional RCMP units for security. This also includes $126 million in federal funding specifically for BMO Field, FIFA training sites and BC Place Vancouver via the Canadian Heritage Department.
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